


Easy Isn't Right

by RandomReader13



Series: Dark Angels and Demon Brats [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood: Lost Days
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Cursing because Jason, Dysfunctional Family, Families of Choice, Gen, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, I guess???, It could theoretically work with canon, Jason Todd Has Issues, Lazarus Pit, Lost Days AU, Pit Madness, Resurrected Jason Todd, She's still an assassin though so keep that in mind, Sort Of, Talia is a good mom, Tiny Jason, Unconventional Families, mom!talia, people forget he was tiny when he first got out of the Pit, robin!jason
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-12
Updated: 2018-12-12
Packaged: 2019-09-17 00:18:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16964202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RandomReader13/pseuds/RandomReader13
Summary: Things weren't always great between Talia and Jason.Prequel to DA&DB, could be read as a standalone.





	Easy Isn't Right

**Author's Note:**

> Sooo I sat down to write the next chapter of DA&DB but my muse said no so this happened. This is officially canon for DA&DB but should be able to be read on its own.  
> Please comment and let me know what you think!

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Talia watched impassively as the boy continued to slam his fists into the face of one of the compound servants. The woman had stopped moving several minutes ago and was hardly recognizable anymore. The boy’s hands were covered in blood and she was sure that he had broken a few knuckles in his wild attack. Her lips pursed slightly at the thought. Fresh out of the Pit as the boy was, any injuries would heal very quickly. She would have to make sure they did not heal incorrectly. At the moment, no amount of quick healing would be able to counteract the slam of fist on skin and bone. Azadeh shifted slightly at her side. Talia glanced at the woman.

“He will tire soon,” she said, folding her hands behind her back. “The Pit can only fuel him for so long.”

“Of course, Mistress,” her second said. Her face was professionally blank but Talia could tell she was not fully convinced. Any other member of her ranks would be punished for revealing doubt in the words of an al Ghul, but Azadeh was her second and so received special privileges. In another lifetime, Talia might even have called her a friend.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Talia’s mouth tightened and her eyes narrowed slightly. The boy was slowing. His face dripped with sweat as he raised his fists for another blow. The green glow of his eyes was strong enough that it reflected off the mess of blood and bone shards beneath him. Yes, he was slowing, but not fast enough. Talia made a subtle gesture with her right hand and two of her men moved forward, taking no notice of the blood soaking into their boots. The boy’s head snapped up and he snarled at them, teeth bared in a clear threat. Her men were far beyond the point of being intimidated by a boy, Pit mad or not, and they easily dodged his sloppy attacks, grabbing his arms and forcing him to his knees in front of Talia. The woman bent forward, grabbing the boy’s jaw in a punishing grip and studying his face. He snapped at her and she tightened her hold, nails biting into skin. After a moment she released him and straightened. The marks from her nails were already fading.

“Take him to his quarters, stand guard outside.”

The men bowed their obedience and dragged the struggling boy away. Talia watched them go, her face smooth and emotionless. The boy would be safe in his room, anything that could possibly cause harm had been removed before he went in the Pit, the walls padded with heavy tapestries. Knowing the madness the way she did, however, it was possible he would find a way to hurt himself despite her efforts.

Dismissing such thoughts, she turned and marched down the hall. Azadeh and her remaining guard followed, their boots moving whisper-silent over the floor. She had other things to attend to. She would check on the boy later. Hopefully by then he would be verbal.

***

“Get the fuck away from me, bitch!”

Talia narrowed her eyes at the boy, who seemed to be caught between backing away and charging at her. Good, that meant the madness was waning a little. “Calm yourself, child.”

“Stay the fuck away!” he yelled, hands balled into fists, eyes still glowing.

“You will control yourself,” Talia said dangerously, “or you will be controlled.”

She could see the moment the madness won, the boy’s face twisted further into rage and he ran at her. She easily sidestepped his first attack, reaching back and grabbing his arm. She twisted the limb until he was bent double on the floor, pinning him down with a knee between his shoulder blades. “Pathetic,” she said coldly. “You fought better when you were brain dead.”

The boy snarled beneath her knee, struggling to get free. “Fucking crazy bitch! Get the hell off!”

“I will release you once you have calmed down,” Talia said, implacable.

“ _Get! Off!_ ” There was a loud cracking sound and the boy screamed in pain. Talia sighed, stepping back to get a better look. The idiot child had dislocated his shoulder by fighting her hold.

“That was a foolish mistake,” she told him. The boy staggered to his feet, glaring at her, one arm cradling the other.

“What do you _want_?” he hissed. Ah, yes, she had forgotten that pain can help lessen the madness.

Talia clasped her hands in front of her and regarded him coolly. “As I have been saying for the past five minutes, I want you to _calm down_.”

“Where am I?”

“Surely your father educated you on who I am,” Talia said.

The boy eyed her, gaze darting around the room. “You’re...Talia al Ghul. This. I’m with the League of Assassins?!” The green glow of his eyes flared in panic. “Where’s Bruce? What did you do to him?!”

“Peace, child. All will be explained. First, your arm needs to be tended to.”

“Fuck my arm!” he yelled. Talia sighed internally. Predictable brat.

“If you want answers,” she said, drawing herself up to her fullest height and folding her arms regally, “you will do as I say.”

“No! You’re- you’re evil! You help your crazy psycho dad kill people!”

Talia’s eyes darkened. “Speak ill of my father again and you will regret it.” If word got out that the boy was disrespecting Ra’s…. Her father was already upset that she had ‘wasted’ the Pit on the ex-Robin, he had made it abundantly clear that he would tolerate nothing further. Fortunately, the boy seemed to take her warning seriously, his eyes widened and he took a half-step back.

Talia watched him for a moment. His eyes were still glowing, but dimmer than before. His posture was less hostile too. “Good. Now, come, we must fix your shoulder.”

He eyed her warily. She stared back. This was an important step; he had to choose to obey her, otherwise, it would always be a battle between them. The minutes ticked past in silence. He shifted uncomfortably; they would have to cure him of such obvious tells.

“Fucking fine!” he finally snapped, still clutching his dislocated arm defensively. She stepped closer to him and he very obviously did not back away. She took his good hand and he let her pull it away from the damaged arm. Instead of doing what he was obviously expecting, she kept hold of his hand and pulled him towards the door. “What- where are we going?” he demanded, tugging at the hand imprisoned in her grasp.

“To the medical facilities,” she replied, grip not budging.

“Let go!”

“No.” He kept struggling for a minute before yelping in pain. She raised her eyes to heaven. “It would be inadvisable to use your injured arm.”

“Shut up,” he grumbled.

She curbed the reprimand on the tip of her tongue. There would be plenty of time to temper his language and teach him respect. At the moment he was teetering on a knife’s blade of tenuous sanity. She would not push him off.

“Why can’t you just fix it?” the boy whined, dragging his heels. “You gotta know how, right?”

The switch from hostile to...whatever this was was...unexpected. Talia did not let this show in her voice. “I am well-versed in first-aid.”

“Then how come-”

“Your hands are in need of attention as well and that cannot be done without the proper equipment.”

“What?” He stopped struggling against her, obviously looking at his hand for the first time. “What happened?”

“You have broken several of your fingers.”

“But they... they’re-”

“Nearly healed, yes.”

“How? How long have I _been_ here?”

Talia did not answer the question, quickening her pace. She could feel the mangled fingers trapped in her hand twitching as he redoubled his efforts to escape. They arrived in front of the medical wing and Azadeh quickly moved forward, pulling the door open. Talia nodded to her as she dragged the boy inside.

“Lemme go! Fuck! Let go!” he yelled, kicking and thrashing.

“Walk on your own power or you will be carried,” she said coldly. His movements faltered. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. He was staring at her, clearly unsure how far he could push her without repercussions. Good, he would be less likely to try his luck.

A doctor appeared in front of them. “Mistress Talia,” he said, bowing deeply. “What brings you here?”

“The boy.” She pulled him in front of her, transferring her grip to his upper arm. “He has a dislocated shoulder and several damaged fingers.”

The doctor stepped forward and the boy pulled back automatically, freezing when his back hit her chest. The man eyed his arm. “The shoulder is easily fixed. Please, come in here.” The boy didn’t move, his legs locked. That was no great hardship, as his socked feet -- shoes were too much of a flight risk -- slid across the stone and allowed her to easily propel him into the room. He looked over his shoulder at her with a glare that was far from intimidating. An examination table sat against one wall and Talia steered the boy over to it. He went, grudgingly, but refused to climb on. Talia exhaled through her nose -- she was getting tired of this -- and flicked a hand. One of her men stepped forward, grabbed the boy before he had time to blink, and sat him on the table. He sat there for a moment, looking stunned. Talia raised an eyebrow at him.

The doctor stepped forward and looked at her. “With your permission, Mistress Talia?” She nodded and he grabbed the boy’s arm, moving it around a little to see the extent of the damage. The boy bit his lip -- another tell -- but he didn’t move or cry out when the doctor relocated his shoulder, merely hissing out a long breath between his teeth. The man stepped back and nodded in satisfaction. “Now let’s see about those hands,” he said. There was a moment of silence as he wiggled and bent the broken fingers. He looked back at her. “These would normally require surgery to fix,” the boy tensed up, his eyes wide with terror, “but because his healing is so elevated right now, it should be enough to re-break and splint them.”

“Do so,” Talia said.

“Hold the fuck up!” the boy shrilled. “No way in hell are you going to-”

“Hold him,” Talia said. Her guards sprang forward. Talia looked at the doctor; he was twisting his hands together nervously. Talia reminded herself that he was not one of the assassins, he was allowed to have tells. “Well?”

“Forgive me Mistress Talia...it would be easier to set the bones if he were not fighting.”

“You’re not gonna fucking break my hand!” the boy was screaming. “Stay the fuck away from me!” She could see the madness seeping back into control, his movements becoming more erratic and powerful. One step forward and a quick jab and he fell silent, his head lolling forward against his chest. She motioned her guards away and the doctor got to work.

***

Talia gently pushed the hair off of the sleeping boy’s forehead. It was easier when he was like this, silent and pliable. It was as if the Pit had not happened, as if he would open his eyes and flash that vague smile he got whenever he saw her.

It had only been two days and already she missed that smile.

Talia pulled the blankets close to his chin. Yes, it was easier when he was comatose, but the glimpses under the rage and madness confirmed that she had made the right decision. Talia sighed, allowing herself the weakness only because there was no one to see. She had separated them in her mind, the quiet, sweet boy who could lay out five trainees in two minutes and the rage-filled, screaming one that was more likely to hurt himself than anyone else. She had to accept that they were one. If fortune smiled on her, he would heal and his mind would clear and perhaps, one day, he would smile at her again.

“You will be alright, Jason,” she whispered, running her hand through his hair. “I will make sure of it.”

**Author's Note:**

> Medical stuff is annoying so I'm saying 'magic' and moving on.  
> The idea of Talia just. sending Jason to his room whenever he starts to lose it is just hilarious to me. Throw a tantrum = get timeout lmao  
> If anyone notices what I did with the names I will be very happy  
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
